After Maine Gov. Paul LePage made national news earlier this month by claiming to have “pocket vetoed” 19 bills that became law without his signature, messages started popping up in my inbox saying things like “An accidental win!” and “Maine—accidentally—outlaws shackling pregnant women?”

The attack on Michelle Wilkins was an unfathomable act of cruelty. However, Colorado legislators must not use it as grounds for passing new feticide laws that will actually make pregnant women vulnerable to arrest and punishment.

Among other things, the new law requires that inmates have access to mental health assessments and treatment during pregnancy and postpartum, and mandates that correctional facilities offer pregnancy and STD tests to inmates.

The Aderholt Amendment to the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act bans the use of Immigration and Customs Enforcement funds to pay for abortion care for detained women, potentially further limiting immigrant women’s access to care.

The regulations will sunset after 90 days, but the governor urged the legislature to take action before then on a pending bill that would ban the practice and offer comprehensive health protections for pregnant inmates.

Given the consensus that shackling pregnant women is not only unnecessary but also degrading, it was a shock to find out this morning that Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill passed by the California Legislature to end shackling of pregnant women in his state.